Federal Action Needed for Comprehensive Reform, Sources Say

Construction industry sources say the latest legal skirmish over Arizona’s controversial immigration law underscores the need for comprehensive immigration reform at the national level. The law, signed April 23, allows police to detain an individual under “reasonable suspicion” of being an illegal alien. The case could ultimately go to the U.S. Supreme Court, say political observers.

“This is a federal issue and it needs to be addressed,” says Kelly Knott, director of congressional relations/human resources and labor for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), Washington, D.C. Until comprehensive reform is adopted in Congress, “more and more states will try to take up their own immigration laws while things remain stalled at the national level,” she says.

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